Remembering to Forget
by Amandasmiles4ya
Summary: We all know everyone gets bullied. But, let's say the whole school was against just YOU- how would you cope? You'd make adjustments, right? Painful adjustments, and changes of a horrifying unknown outcome. An outcome you never knew existed. -But maybe he can help. Slightly OOC, FAX!
1. Ch 1

**Hey everyone! So I decided to start a new FanFic!**

**Please don't mind the bit of OOC, if your not a fan of that, please don't hate. **

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><p>"Hey, fat ass!" Called the most popular girl in West High School, from across the huddled hall. "I really hope we'll be seeing you next year," Fake concern colored her obviously mocking tone.<p>

_Ignore it,_ I told myself for the hundredth time that day, _just ignore it._

I slammed the locker door shut using my chubby right arm, grateful that summer was finally here. You have no idea what kind of torture and pure excruciating misery these walls held for me every coming day.

Yes, I am aware that teasing happens to everyone, and that one can be cursed with far worse than a couple insults, or pushes every once in a while. It's totally normal to be bullied in high school, it's basically a pastime, right? Part of growing up; you just have to brush it off.

But I refuse to believe this tormenting is common. That it is just typical for a teenage girl to be abused so profusely, every single day of her junior year, for no apparent reason. That a girl deserves to be purposely pushed down the stairs for wearing a freaking yellow sweatshirt, or for absently walking down the hall way without looking up, or for accidentally brushing against someone when it's crowded, or for just minding her own damn business. Is it justifiable for that girl to continuously be cussed at for being herself?

I think not, but feel free to jump in with your own opinion any time now.

I'm the victim of West High's never-ending torment, which is a specialty of the girl who gets away with anything and everything. She turned the entire school against me. Because I'm fat, and ugly, and unworthy in her eyes. She says, due to those flaws, I don't deserve to live.

I'm a sixteen- going on seventeen- year old girl in this tiny high school. I shamefully weigh 173 pounds. I have flabby arms that can never possibly be hidden; I have sagging, abnormally large breasts (that, by the way, just made me look even bigger). Anyone can see my stomach is nice and round, though I try my best to hide it under dark and oversized clothing.

So I _was _"fat", and maybe that made me "ugly". But I'm pretty sure that doesn't disqualify me from life.

Insecurely, I pulled my extra-large hoodie up over my told to be "huh-_uge_" head, and began my short walk home.

That was until, "Yo! Fat ass!" Yelled a familiar voice I could've recognized anywhere. It was the most popular _guy_ in school, Dylan Hagen.

Dylan Hagen was the type of guy any girl would kill for. He had that gorgeous_ Abercrombie and Fitch _body, including those killer six pack abs that made your knees week. Then, he had that silky styled, dirty blond hair that you only see on celebrities. He also had the clothes, the money, the girls, and to top it all off, he had his posse. All that made him the self absorbed man he was, yet I couldn't make myself hate him. Even though he played a big part in making my life a hell-on-earth. Maybe he was just too sexy to be apposed.

Hey, a girl can dream.

And here he was, Dylan _perfect_ Hagen, talking to _me_. Any sane girl's completion to life! . . . Except, he was unfortunately and unreasonably cussing me out.

_Ignore it. _(That's one hundred and one times, now.)

Within Dylan's posse there was Sam. Sam Holden had light brown hair styled short, sweet light blue eyes, and some full pink lips. Probably had a nice six pack under his cliché varsity jacket, too. He was cute, I guess. But then again, I'm not exactly one to judge- what with being the ugliest girl in the entire school, and all.

Another one of Dylan's followers was Nick. I'd never really payed much attention to him. He wasn't as close with Dylan, I believe. Sam was more of a real devoted Dylan-wannabe. You didn't see Nick as much with Dylan, but you saw him often enough to call him part of Dylan's little group.

Nick had sincere long black hair, and his skin was olive toned; he had a really nice color, now that I think about it. I'm pretty sure his eyes were brown. A really, really dark shade of brown though. Maybe even black? I'm not sure. I never really looked him in the eyes before- hell, I've never looked any of these guys in the eyes before. But, I'm pretty sure they were all attractive enough, considering how the girls were all over them fairly equally.

If I remember correctly, Dylan and Lisa were now together, once again. The posse's relationships were severely insalubrious. For example, just a couple months ago, it was "Lisa and _Sam_", now it's "Lisa and _Dylan_", with a likely soon to be"Lisa and _Nick_ ". The same exact thing happened last year with a certain Brigid Dwyer.

Brigid Dwyer was like the original Lisa. Skinny as an anorexic, and slutty as a hooker, Brigid was actually like the _Dylan_ of Lisa's former clique; the head. But That little high school fantasy abruptly came to an end when she got knocked up.

Her life went strait down the drain. She now sat home, her reputation destroyed, taking care of her unwanted newborn baby girl. They said Dylan might have been the father, but he denied it. So, now known as a world famous slut, Brigid is never seen out of the house. Unfortunately, she decided on _keeping _the poor child, who'll probably end up just like her mother.

Excuse me, I really shouldn't judge.

I noticed Lisa clacking her six inch heals over to my pathway home. "_Hi_, bitch." And that's what she calls _me. _"Why don't you come over here and strip for us?" She called, just a few feet away. "Show some skin, for once? For a little 'last day of school celebration', eh? All that fat you're storin' in that hu_-uge _sweat shirt of yours is probably molding by the minute." She spat at me.

I swallowed hard, and turned away from her. _Don't show pain. _I told myself, as I noticed some other school students were noticeably gathering around us. _It'll just make her happy. _I said to myself again, _ Ignore it. Just ignore it._

"Are ya deaf now?" She taunted me, her voice coated with bitch. "_Oh_," She went on, as if talking to an infant. "_I get it!_ Your just too _insecure._" She finished.

I paused in my tracks, _Ignore it, Max. IGNORE IT. _I almost screamed at myself.

From the corner of my eye, I noticed Lisa turn to face the newly formed crowd of students, who apparently, had nothing better to do than to watch my suffering.

"You guys wanna see an ugly, fat ass cry?" She asked our audience. I turned my head away, as I heard the crowd agree and continued walking. I heard Lisa scream to me in a high-pitched, nasally, unattractive tone, "Hey! Where're you going, bitch?" along with the sound of fast paced footsteps tearing through the grassy road, and then. . .

_Oof! _Her six inch heels went right into my back, using all the strength she had in her patite little body.

I crashed onto the ground, and was mostly surprised when I heard a _crack_ come from my right arm. And then the pain. _Oh!_ That _vicious, _vicious pain, as it took over my whole right side and numbed it miserably. I heard a scream, as hot, stinging tears formed in my dirt filled eyes without my permission. Embarrassment burned my face when realized the scream had been me.

I remembered hearing laughter, and shouts, even _clapping _as I lied there, helplessly still. Soon, I'd heard descending footsteps. No one bothered to help me up. Luckily, I remembered I had my cell phone with me (which was exceptionally rare) so I could call my foster mom to pick me up. My mom, Anne Walker, was surprised to hear what had happened and said she'd rush to be there soon, to my brutal rescue.

As I lied there, feeling very obvious and looking pathetic, I knew I couldn't take this torture any longer.

But little did I know what would eventually come from _that_ epiphany. . .

In a nutshell, that summer turned out to be a summer of pure misery_. _A misery of _changes_, a misery of _pain_, a misery of _pressure_, and a damn misery of a very different kind of torture. It was definitely the most confusing, stressful and horrifyingly tormenting days of my existance, but I hoped it would be helpful in the long run; that I would be beautiful, be _loved _for once in my life. Even if it couldn't last forever.

It came to be a summer of the most inflexible adjustments ever known to mankind.

And boy, was it effective.

But, now, it all comes down to this: Was it _good_, or _bad?_

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	2. Ch 2

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><p>Pain. Freaking <em>hysterical <em>pain.

The kind of pain that sinks into you bones, seeping through every single tiny vain, feeling eternal, feeling _permanent_. Pain that makes you just want to flat out _die. _And pain that drives you to doing it _yourself_.

That's the kind of pain I felt- everywhere. However, I could feel the core of it all in my stomach. My now _flat _stomach, by the way.

I know, shocking, isn't it?

Well, It's true. I now shame_lessly _weigh 106 pounds. I'd lost 67 pounds just this summer. Yes, _67 pounds. _And, _yes_, apparently that is possible, and you will soon learn how. In addition to my weight loss, I went from glasses, to contacts (that was the easy part), got rid of my told to be "disgusting" metal mouth, and bought some acne cream.

I think you would understand it more thoroughly if you'd actually _heard_ most of the story, so I'll start from the beginning. . .

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><p><em>-Day one of summer-<em>

"Mom- I. . . I can't d-do this. . . anymore!" I yelled. I was home, on the couch, sobbing. Sobbing like I've never sobbed before. It was after the incident I'd had with Lisa, _after _I'd gotten my bulky cast put over my chunky arm at our local hospital.

"_Sh_, sweety," My stepmother whispered, rubbing warm circles into my back. "Everything will be okay." _Of course she says that, _I remembered thinking.

"Mom! No- nothing is going to be _okay!" _I exploded, exasperated, my shuddered sobs faded while boiling anger took over. "Summer doesn't last forever, Mom. And you _know _that!" Angry tears blurred my vision, yet again. "I'm still gonna have to go to school again, and get hurt again, and get-!" My sentence was left hanging, because I was once again, taken over by broken sobs.

I felt pathetic as Ann's reassuring arms wrap around me, "Oh, Maxie!" She murmured into my hair, sympathetically. I tried pushing her away. "Max, hon, come on, go take a shower, you'll feel better." She told me, attempting to wipe away some of my stray tears.

"No," I moaned. "Leave me alone." I rubbed my hands across my face and got up to go lock myself in my room.

Then, she said, "I can help you, Max." and she sounded desperate.

I didn't even bother answering- I knew that was literally impossible

"Max," I didn't respond, and kept walking. "Maximum, I can, and I _will _help you." She added on, rushing over to hug me.

And that's what she intended to do.

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><p><em>-Two weeks later-<em>

"You'll be super-model skinny by the time school comes along," My Mom said cheerily, smiling as the doctor left the room.

I'd undergone a small procedure at the hospital, where they placed- or injected- something in my body. I wasn't exactly sure what it was, but I believed my Mother's word. I'd also received some special pills I had to take from that day forward. I was fine with all of it, as long as I wouldn't have to continue living this particular hell, of course.

I nodded, and gave my Mom a hug. "Thanks," I muttered. "I love you."

"I Love you, too." She replied, pecking me on the forehead.

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><p><em>-July-<em>

_2:43 AM_

I gasped, and held back the traitor tears as a familiar pain paralyzed my body, like it had just the night before. I sat up on my mostly comfortable bed, attempting Ti breathe evenly in and out, as my Mother had told me to do when the pain worsened.

Finally, I couldn't take it anymore. I clutched my stomach tightly, and ran to get my pain medication from the bathroom.

But when I finally arrived to the bathroom, I felt queasy with nausea. I felt it coming, as I dashed to the toilet.

. . . And puked my guts out.

My Mom must of heard my gagging and gasping, due to the fact that she came in running, and raced to pull my hair up and out of my face. I coughed furiously for a bit after, until it finally came to a steady end.

Not saying a word, My Mother quietly handed me my meds, along with a few sleeping pills, considering the way I gripped my stomach for dear life.

"Thanks," I muttered sickly, and wobbly slugged off to my room for sleep.

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><p><em>-Early August-<em>

It was a new kind of hell. A very intense, very _fiery_ hell. Nevertheless, I'd learned to take it, embrace it, and to live it. For, it would be my new life.

Sorry, let me rephrase that: My new _hell_.

I didn't mind it so much, though. This physical pain could not even _compare _to the emotional pain I'd received in the past year. In fact, it was much more preferable. Yes, it was definitely hard, and at times, too much to bare, but if it got me out of playing the roll of the victim in this case, I was at ease.

But sadly, school was just around the corner. Meaning I had only one week left. I was really stressed and the anxiety made me feel as though I couldn't breathe.

The raging questions that I knew could only be answered in the future kept me preoccupied:

Would they still say I was ugly, and fat? Would they still hate me? Would they make fun of me? Hurt me? Bully be?

. . . Or would they like the change? Like _me? _Would I make friends? _Boyfriends?_ Would I be included? Talked to _normally__?_ Would I be known? Included? _Something?_

It all just added to my jitters. I was so afraid.

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><p><em>-School resumes-<em>

The dreaded day was here and I was most definitely _not _ready.

My stomach hurt like the devil. I was tense, stiff, and I felt fearfully self conscious.

I couldn't do it. I wouldn't _make it. _I would surely die.

"Max, honey, time to wake up," I heard my Mom's muffled voice. "School, remember?" She asked, softly. I moaned.

_Oh, I remember._

How could I ever forget?

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><p><strong>That must'v been the fastest summer ever.<strong>

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	3. Ch 3

**Hey, guys, I know I haven't updated in a while, so this one's a quicky- I had to give you something :)**

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><p>I felt so... weird? I don't know. As walked down the steps to the kitchen, the dominant stabs of pain in my stomach managed to be ignored. I was used to it, you see. Somehow, I'd lost five more pounds since last week, so I now weighed 101 pounds. Lucky me, eh? The sucky part is the pain. But, in my opinion, this pain was a whole lot less painful than what I'd felt in the past.<p>

So I'll deal, I guess. It's not likely for it to get any worse, anyway.

On to better topics, you'll never guess what I'm wearing to school today. Seriously, it's a shocker to _me_. I used to make fun of those girls who got all "dressed up" for school. I mean, it's unnatural. Your basically dressing up for _hell. _Isn't that the least bit messed up?

Anyways, I'm wearing a dress. Yes, an actual real _dress. _You never thought that day would come, now, did you?

This dress wasn't slutty, like most these days- I'm still not comfortable with baring all that skin- but it was very appealing, and I guess "fashionable". And I happened to fall in love with it.

The material was gorgeous, and it was a deep blue, almost a maroon color. It had a small little belt, which I tied to a bow in the back, and flowed beautifully up until an inch above my knees. The sleeves were transparent, so that you could still see my arm through the material, and fell up to my elbows.

To be honest, I loved it way more than my usual 'jeans and oversized T'. In fact, I had to donate all my clothes to a charity. All my jeans couldn't even attempt to stay up my waist, and as for the shirts- they now came to my mid thigh.

Well, that's what you get for loosing 68 pounds in one summer.

I'd also received a whole new wardrobe. Filled with all girly essentials, and shrunken clothing for my _new_ life, of course. Overall, I was happy, exited, joyful.

But most of all, I was scared.

Who wouldn't be? I mean, as I said before, I'd lost 72 freaking pounds in one summer. Isn't that crazy? Doesn't that sound desperate? Extreme? Did I let the bullies win? Had I given into there cruel power? Did I really care that much to please them? . . .To all those questions I prayed for the answer was _no_.

_No, I did this for me._

Well, I did. But I also did it for them, and for that I am ashamed.

I tried to change my thoughts to more optimistic levels, but as I kissed my mom goodbye, pulled my _Juicy Couture_ bag over my shoulder, and headed into my new- and first- car my mother had gotten me, I felt my heartbeat quicken.

What was going to happen to me?

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><p><strong>Yeah, I know, it's really short. And didn't really go anywhere. Sorry, I owe you guys.<strong>

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	4. Ch 4

**I know it's been forever, but I couldn't get this out of my head :)**_  
><em>

**Oh, and to clear up any confusion, their IS a reason as to the why ****Max lost the weight the way she did. You'll see!**

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><p><em>Oh my god...<em>

_Is that...?_

_No way._

_It couldn't be._

_Fat ass? _

_Huh, not any more._

_Whoah._

_Holly shi-_

Everyone around me was silent, but I heard every whisper louder than a million police sirens in an echoing tunnel. It was horrible. No one approached me as I walked the school halls in my new body. They just stared. And stared, and stared, and stared.

That was until a short, perky, africain-american girl, with a cheerful smile, came up to me and said, "Hi!" It just about made my day.

"Hey," I answered before she could introduce herself.

"I'm Monique Martinez, but most people just call me Nudge. My older step brother goes to school here." she went on, "Do you know him? Nick? Or, what does he go by... Fang? Anyway, I just transferred from my old school. It was private. And totally sucked! Let me tell you, having no boys around really makes life frustrating." she continued, "I mean, you probably wouldn't understand, 'cause your school is full of them, plus you're like _really_ pretty, and all. How are the guys here, by the way?" she finally finished her introduction.

Boy did this girl talk a lot. I barely got half of what she said.

"I'm Max. Maximum Ride is my full name." I began a bit shyly. "I'm actually not that popular with the guys, so I don't really know much, but I've seen your brother around here."

"Really? Like, what do you mean by 'not that popular with the guys', are they all gay, or something?" she asked, literally and utterly confused.

I laughed for the first time in ages. "No, just not really 'into me' I guess?" It was hard for me to explain to her all this without telling her how overweight and ugly I used to be.

"Are you seriouse?" Nudge seemed unbelieving. "You're lying arn't you. Playing the humble card, eh?" she smiled. "It's fine, you can tell me!"

I thought for a moment. If I wanted a actual, real friend, she'd have to know a bit of my past...

"No, I'm really being seriouse." I tried to explain, blushing at her compliment. "The thing is, I used to be really overweight. Fat. Basically, I was bullied all through middle school, and high school so far, up until now, I guess. During the summer I lost a lot of weight. In a crazy way- but I lost it." Nudge's eyes were sympathetic, though I didn't want her pitty. The thought of my weight loss just brought back the attention to the horrible pains in my stomach. It felt like they were spreading.

I ignored them. They were my new bullies, I guess.

"I'm sorry Max. I didn't mean to-" she tried to apologize but I cut her off.

"No, no, no, don't worry about it. You might as well know, if the entire school is whispering about me." I muttered, catching the many stares and glances.

"They're talking about _you_?" she asked me, like she had heard all that they said, but hadn't known who it was about. I just nodded. "Oh, I'm sure they'll get over it! You're georgouse! You'll have all the guys wrapped around your finger, soon enough." she tried to reassure me.

I shook my head, "It's not like that. Really, you have no idea." I tried to explain again, but then the warning bell rang.

"Maybe we can hang out later?" she offered. I smiled and nodded. As I walked off to my first class of the year, it finally occurred to me that I might have actually made a friend.

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><p>First period was bareable for the first short minutes. But then I cought Lissa's devious smile, and I could hear all the words my classmates were saying about me. They all still hated me. It didn't matter how different I looked. They still found the flaws in me.<p>

_How did she loose all that weight?_

_She's probably anorexic._

_I heard she got a sergery._

_What a freak._

It was killing me. Everything was killing, physically and mentally. I needed to get out of here. When the dismissing bell rang, I darted out the door.

I was unaware of my surroundings when I slammed into someone, dropping my books onto the ground. When I looked up to see who it was, I mentally slapped myself.

"_Fat ass Ride?_ Boy have you changed..." His smile was sickening as his eyes skimmed my body in the most disgusting way. Like he was mentally undressing me. It gave me the most uncomfortable feeling.

It suprised me that I used to have a crush on him - I guess looks can be deceiving.

"Hi Dylan." I mumbled, catching the eyes of Sam, and Nick behind him. I bent down to get my books, but Dylan refused to let me. He bent down instead, and handed them back to me.

"Hit me up, sometime." He winked at me and walked away. I had little time to process what just happened when a wave of pain exploded in my body. I clutched my stomach, holding back the screams that threatened to escape my lips.

As my eyes began to sting with salty tears, they somehow locked with the last member of Dylan's posse. Nick Marinez, Nudge's brother. I quickly turned away and dashed towards the girls bathroom.

Not only was it my stomach, but also my back was burning, and aching in pain. I quickly rummaged through my purse to find the pain relievers. My mom had told me to use them if it got any worse during the day.

I heard the bell ring, signaling second period when a certain red haired girl barged into the bathroom.

"Max Ride," she began, her tone said she was in aw, but my instincts told me otherwise. "I'm so glad you decided to take care of you're little problem! You look great!" I could hear the compliments, but I couldn't feel them.

"Um, thanks, Lissa." I responded awkwardly.

She cocked her head and smiled at me. "You know what? We should totally start hanging out." Now I stared at her in shock. "It's my birthday next week, and I'm having a tittle party with some of the people in our grade, you wanna join?"

On the inside, I was like 'Oh my god! ...Lissa wants me at her party?', the girl who basically _ruined_ my life, was seriously inviting me? I tried to contain my excitement and suspicions on the outside and said, "Sure, sounds fun." I smiled.

After Lissa left, I let my mind wonder for a bit as I thought... Maybe today _wasn't_ so bad.

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	5. Ch 5

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><p>"How can I help you?" The lady at the front desk of the office questioned politely.<p>

"Hi, my name is Anne Walker. I have a two o'clock appointment with Dr. Ross." Maximum Ride's Mother replied.

The receptionist scrolled down her list of appointments, searching for the women's name. "Yes, here you are. You may enter his office." The lady then pressed the button on the right of her, which unlocked the door to the incorporate hall. Anne walked in, finding Dr. Ross's room right away. She'd been here multiple times before.

"Hello, Ms. Walker," Said a grey-haired man in a white, knee lengthed laboratory coat, turning to face her.

"Dr. Ross, I need your help." Anne whispered timidly to the older man; she had no time to waste on unnecessary greetings. "It's getting worse. She's in constant pain, and I can tell its been spreading everywhere. Her medication is _not_ working." Her expression was frightened, and full of anger as she was reminded of her daughter's suffering.

"I told you, Ms. Walker, your daughter is in a serious condition. Their isn't much we can do." The doctor reasoned. "Their is no telling what situations might rise in the future."

"Well, can't you tell me more? What this serious condition _means_? What it _is_?" Anne cried desperately. "She thinks it's the surgery causing all the pain! She's blaming it on the weight loss! On herself!"

Anne had commenced to rebuking herself for all that was happening to her daughter. She'd wanted to help Max, so the emotional pain, the bullying would stop; she'd known their was no other way for Max to loose the weight, besides the surgery, due to her "condition" . But now she regretted it all.

"I'm sorry Ms. Walker, I dont know enough to explain. And, well, those basically are the reasons." He replied calmly, unfazed by her situation.

"Why can't you help her? Don't you have anything? At least to take away the pain?" She asked hopelessly.

"I'm sorry." Dr. Ross apologized again. "Maybe you could explain to her what exactly _is_ happening?" He suggested.

"Again - I don't _know_ what's happening! _You_ hardly know what's happening!" She yelled, exasperated. "This is all your fault! How could you have done this to her? She's all alone now! No one can relate, or even imagine her pain!" Anne felt the torture of her daughter as if it were her own.

"It is most definitely _not_ my fault, and you know that." He said, in a cruel, defending tone.

Anne huffed, her anger and frustration coming out in deep breaths. "You could've stopped him, that day. You're a liar, just like all you people here. You're no genius. You're _mental_. You all are." And with that, she stormed out of the office and out the exit, roughly hearing a scripted goodbye from the lady at the front desk.

And all the while, the screaming in her head wouldn't stop. It just tormented her with this one question:

_What the hell was happening to her daughter?_

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><p>I was at Nudge's house. We'd made plans to hang out after school together, and I was really starting to enjoy the day, for once.<p>

"So you wanna do each other's nails? Or makeup?" Nudge suggested enthusiastically. I laughed. I guess we hadn't exactly gotten to know each other that well if she was suggesting _that_.

"I'm not really a fan of that stuff..." I trailed off, realizing Nudge's mouth had dropped open.

"Are you crazy? Max, you're totally crazy!" She responded in disbelieving shock. "How could you _not_ enjoy pampering yourself?" She then looked at me suspiciously, "Wait, let me guess... You've never even done 'that stuff' before," Nudge's smile was devious. "I knew it. Come with me." She yanked my arm, pulling me up some long, wooden stairs that led us to her room.

"After I give you a mini makeover we can watch a movie, okay?" She told me. I groaned, but was secretly exited. I really had never "pampered myself" as Nudge put it. And I hadn't had a real friend to hang out with since the fifth grade, so I was fine with basically anything she decided to do- as long as a real friend is what Nudge was.

As we settled in Nudges room, I realized it was exactly _her_. Colorful, but mostly pink; she had posters on her wall of some famous pop stars, and had clothes everywhere. And by that, I mean _literally_ everywhere.

"Sorry for the mess, it legit took me forever to find something to where this morning." She apologized, pushing a pile of clothes to the side.

"But you have so _much_ clothes..." I said, looking around, mesmerized.

"I guess, but I'm in desperate need of the mall. They have, like, _billions_ of back to school sales this week, it's so exiting! We should totally go shopping together!" She squealed. I rolled my eyes, and chuckled to myself.

Nudge rummaged around her room, while I sat down on her very comfortable, floral purple comforter. She brought out a large pink leopard bag and rumaged through it for what she called her "magic makeup essentials".

I let her pamper me all she wanted. She did my nails, and even my hair, while we talked about nothing in particular.

"Okay, okay," I said, after about an hour, laughing at how serious she took this little makeover. "Now can we watch a movie?" I begged her.

"Fine." She grumbled. "I'll get the popcorn-"

Right then; out of absolutely nowhere: _Pain_.

"It's okay, I'll get it," I quickly cut her off, then cleared my throat. "Just tell me where it is." The pain relievers were beginning to where off. I could feel the burning begin to become more profound in my stomach; though, by now it almost felt as if it had washed over my entire body.

"'K, it's in the big pantry near the fridge, downstairs." She told me, as an abrupt shot of pain coursed through me, once again. I swiftly turned away so she wouldn't catch me wincing, as she grabbed the TV remote.

"Pick a good movie!" I called from the hall. I hugged my body tightly, trying to quench the stabs that coursed through it, as I tumbled down the stairs. I found the popcorn easily, and set it in the microwave. I had two minutes, so I decided to take some meds, again.

When the popcorn was ready, I grabbed it out of the microwave and turned around to find Nick Martinez. I'd almost forgotten he lived here; he was quiet, I'd noticed.

"Hey," I heard him say in a deep, husky sort of tone. I clutched my stomach subconsciously for a moment, as another round of misery passed through my body. I hoped he hadn't seen anything.

"Hi," I mumbled back, my voice a little choked. I began coughing, almost hacking right in his face. _Oh, great_. _The first time a guy actually talks to me without unfairly cussing me out, this happens._ Suprised, I watched his hand fly up to my shoulder, holding it lightly.

"Hey, are you okay?" He asked me, honest concern colored his dark eyes as he looked into mine. I quickly turned away from them, feeling as though he could almost see right through me. I swallowed back the ache in my throat and nodded, barely giving myself time to prosess that this very handsome boy was actually paying attention to me.

"Yeah, of course. Throat itched." I quickly reassured him, my voice a bit raspy. His hand still held my shoulder a moment longer, then he finally let it fall to his side. "Thanks, Nick." I muttered before heading back to Nudge. The pain was thankfully, beginning to calm. I took a deep breath and walked into her room. "Got the popcorn," I smiled; my exterior swiftly changed.

"Yay! We're watching _When in Rome_." Nudge said, just as she pressed play. I sighed, glad it wasn't one of those mushy-gushy princess movies I'd assumed she'd torture me with.

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><p>Fang had his suspicions as Maximum Ride hurriedly left the kitchen with the popcorn. He noticed she looked pained... Like, physically pained. His mind filled with questions.<p>

_Was she anorexic?_

_On drugs, like the kids at school were suggesting?_

_Was she sick, ill?_

He hadn't really ever payed much attention to this girl. Heck, he hadn't really payed much attention to anyone, lately. And he assumed she hadn't either, by the way she called him Nick.

But the one thing he knew about her was that she was the girl everyone hated for no damn reason. And that she was suffering.

Right then, breaking his train of thought, his cell phone vibrated scilently in his pocket. He answered the call.

"Hello?" He nswered, the word coming out more like a question than a greeting.

"Hey Fangster, it's Lissa." Said an obnoxiously squeaky voice on the other line.

"Oh, hey." Fang muttered, confused on why she was calling, and hating the nickname she'd used.

"Sammy's throwing me a little birthday party this weekend, at my house," She told him.

"You're house?" Fang cut in, a bit suprised.

"Yeah, my Mom's vacationing in Paris." She answered him.

"Okay..." He dragged.

"So be there at eight, starurday night!" She finished excitedly. "Gotta go,"

He shook his head, and ended the call. He honestly felt bad for Lissa. He knew she would end up just like poor Bridget Dawyer. But that didn't make her any less annoying.

Fang thought for a moment, then decided he'd attend the party, assuming he'd be sitting on the side, bored the entire time.

_Oh, well ittle did he know._

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><p><strong>You'll have to wait to find out!<strong>_  
><em>

**Want a fast updated?**

**R-E-V-I-E-W and tell me!**

**~A.O.L.~**


	6. Ch 6

**Hey guys, thanks for waiting! The reviews are amazing :D**

**Enjoy!**

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><p>It was Saturday already. Lisa's little party was in just an hour and I was curled up in a ball in the corner of my bedroom, moaning in pain as quietly as I could manage. But I <em>didn't<em> cry. I've learned to stop those traitor drops of salt from soaking my face without my permission.

But the _pain_. It was still there; and It was getting weird. Now I couldn't even tell where the set point of it even was exactly. It wouldn't stay in one place for even a millisecond.

I began pulling at my thick hair, as if it was a battle of tug-of-war. For some reason I didn't know, it made it easier, bearable. So now I knew where _some_ pain would be.

I checked my phone for the first time all day. I had twenty-seven missed calls and nineteen unopened text messages, all from Nudge, of course. I almost laughed, but rather breathed more air out of my nose than usual.

_Hey!_

_Hellooo_

_You there?_

_Max?_

_Are you going to Lisa's thing?_

_Hello?_

_MAX?_

_Maximum Ride._

_EARTH TO MAX!_

_ARE YOU ALIVE?_

_Do you need help getting ready? _

_Hair? Makeup? _

_Answer me Max. _

_DAMMIT!_

_NOW!_

_IDC I'M COMMING OVER._

_I'm here. Your mom let me in. _

_I'm coming upstairs._

_I can here you breathing!_

Right then, four hard, fast knocks on my bedroom door.

"Max, I'm coming in!" I'd already learned the uselessness of arguing with Nudge so I did my best to look the slightest bit of normal so she wouldn't throw a fit.

I stood up, whipping the creases that had formed on my jeans until they disappeared. That's when Nudge gave up on waiting for me to unlock the door and somehow did it herself, barging in. She was good at that, too.

"Are you, like, _mad_ at me or something, Max? 'Cause your mom told me you haven't left the house all day! And you didn't have a second to text me or call me back? Am I really _that_ bad? Come on Max, what did I do to-"

"_Nudge,_ I'm not mad-" I tried.

"Then why are you ignoring me?" She asked so desperately.

"I'm just not feeling that great. I don't know if I'm up to the party tonight..." I told her. Nudge gave me a look. That "I'm-not-putting-up-with-your-crap-today-Max" look.

"No." She knew I would try to get out of this. She was prepared.

"But-"

"No 'buts'. No talking, okay? I'll take care of everything." And with that, Nudge became her inner child and I became her new life-sized barbie doll. She had me ready in less than thirty minutes.

"You're gorgeous, now let's go." She said sternly with a bit of ego.

Fang POV

And It was just like Fang knew it would be. Most of the school showed up to Lisa's house party, the music was at full blast, so that the ground was practically shaking. Everyone was either hooking up, dancing- (but Fang thought of it more as screwing), or getting high and wasted. It was all expected. These party's were usually once every other month or something like that.

And as usual, he sat on the side, uncontrollably aware of everything, but at the same time in his own world. _Another one of these again, _Fang thought to himself. He only attended so he wouldn't stand out; to keep himself on the down-low.

The first couple times he came to one of these things, all his friends pushed him to dance. Now they knew to just leave him the hell alone.

Everyone thought of Fang as a loner, but that just gave the girls one more reason to get in line.

From a distance Fang saw the familiar dark hair of his adopted little sister. She'd been to one other party like this before, but he usually didn't let her come. She'd begged him because her new friend was invited so he gave in.

Fang caught site of Maximum Ride, too. As they came closer to his table, he realized how attractive she was. He wondered why he'd never noticed before.

"Fang!" Yelled Nudge above the music. Fang looked up and gave her a weak smile. He just wanted to get out of the place, fly away. "You've met Max, right?"

Fang looked over to Max. Her smile was shy.

_Max, _he thought. He liked it.

He flashed her a crooked smile, and notice when she looked away awkwardly.

Nudge grabbed Max's hands and shrieked, "Come on, let's go dance!" there was a pause, then Max laughed as if her friend had gone completely insane. "What?" Nudge asked. Fang heard her suddenly insecure tone and almost felt like laughing to.

"Sorry, I don't dance..." Max mouthed to her. "Go!" She added, then whispered something in her ear that was inaudible to Fang. Nudge rolled her eyes as she shook her head and dashed towards the dance floor.

Fang watched as Max subconsciously held her stomach while she took a seat at Fang's loner table. He saw her wince a bit. He could tell she was in pain; and good at hiding it, too. He felt a pang of déjà vu.

"Hey, are you okay?" He tried yelling over the music. Max looked up, an apologetic look on her face as she gestured to her ears. She couldn't here him. Fang tried again but to no success. He gestured for her to follow him as he stood up.

When they finally exited through the back of the house, Fang felt like his ears were numb. Max still grimaced in pain, but when she noticed his gaze, she quickly put on a mask.

"You were saying something?" She asked, sounding restricted.

"Um, are you okay?" Fang blurted out, his tone a bit raspy from the yelling, which he rarely did.

"Of course, why wouldn't I be?" _She's a damn good actress, _Fang thought.

"Well, you kinda look like you're in pain..." He replied honestly. Max looked into his eyes for a split second, then quickly to the ground. Her hands were balled up in fists, at the sides of her hips, and she was chewing her lip so hard, it looked like it was about to fall off.

She _was_ in pain, a _lot_ of pain, Fang could tell as the girl quickly turned her back to him.

Instinctively, he placed his hand on her bare shoulder. His eyebrows pulled together when he realized how boiling her skin felt. As if she'd just been standing in the direct sun for hours.

But it was dark, and chilly outside.

Fang rubbed his palm down her back, Max shivered. This type of temperature wasn't normal. The creases in her skin, he could feel most definitely weren't normal.

_Was she dehydrated?_

_Did she have the flu?_

_Some rare disease?_

_Was she pregnant?_

Max turned around, her eyes were bloodshot, her face wet with tears. She didn't know what to say. Neither did Fang.

And then it hit him, and he almost started crying _himself._

Maximum Ride collapsed to the ground.

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><p><strong>Well, I'm on winter break now so I decided to finally update... lol, I know it's been a while. <strong>

**REVIEW and tell me what you want and when you want it!**

**Thanks so much guys,**

**~A.O.L.~**


	7. Update!

Hey guys!

I don't know if I still have any readers because I've literally been gone for, like, ever and I very well could be talking to myself at the moment–But I really missed this, and I dreadfully need to start writing again.

So review if you'd like me to continue this story! Or if I should just delete it, or revise it, or write a new fan fiction

or whatever lol

-**Amanda**


	8. Chapter 7

**It's a bit short, but I thought it was about freaking time. Thank you guys for the support and reviews! ILYSM!**

**Omg, I missed this so much. Enjoy!**

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><p>Two muffled voices of the opposite sex filled my unconscious ears before I could open my eyes.<p>

_Are you sure?_

_Yeah, man, she's like us._

_But… how? Was she a victim, too? Did she take the pills? And I thought this thing only happened to guys…_

_Guess not._

_It just makes me wonder how many others there might be…_

I finally opened my eyes to see darkness. They slowly adjusted to the dim lighting coming from the streetlights through the window, that was adjacent to the bed I was settled on. That's when I realized it wasn't even my bed. And It definitely was not my room. My mind went blank; all I could remember was the murderous blast of plain that took over my body while I was talking to someone at the party. The memory was hazy but I'm pretty sure that someone was Nick Martinez.

_Great_.

I attempted to sit up, but I _couldn't._ _What the hell?_ I couldn't move! Why couldn't I move my legs? What was happening to me? Oh, God. _Oh God, oh God, oh God._

"Hello!" I helplessly yelled from the mystery room._ Where was I?_

Someone finally opened the door. It was Nick. Nick! Wait… Nick?

"You're awake," He sounded relieved, impending towards my bedside.

"Nick? Where am I? And what the hell happened? I can't move! Why can't I freaking move, oh my-"

"Sh, don't worry, you're fine, you'll be able to move soon." He reassured me with no explanation, whatsoever. Um.

"_Don't worry? _How can I not _worry? _I can't sit up! And you didn't answer my questions! Nick-" He cut me off again.

"I'll explain everything, just relax." He put his hand on my limp one for a moment, then moved it before I could really acknowledge the relieving gesture. His voice was so soothing when he whispered, but I was about to burst. "I'm gonna help you sit up, now." My eyebrows sewed together in confusion as his warm, muscular arms found my waist, pulling me forward into a sitting position. I could feel the strength in my body returning when he let me go. I progressively began to curl and uncurl my stiff fingers and toes. "Follow me." Nick waited by the door as I gradually found my feet. I followed him into another unfamiliar room, still totally and utterly mystified as to _what the hell happened_.

Nick stood in front of an extended full sized mirror; his dark eyes told me to join him. Does anyone else out here think this is kind of insanely bizarre? Like a _seriously_ weird dream, or something?

When I approached Nick and stood in front of the mirror, he told me to turn around. I gave him an eerie look and did as he said, for some odd reason. That's when I knew I was dreaming.

"This is the weirdest dream ever," I voiced.

"Wait... you had no idea this was happening to you?" Nick asked me, sounding entirely astonished.

"Um," _Literally, the strangest dream I ever had._

"How long have you had BKM?" He asked me.

"BKM?" _Huh?_

"The pain." _Ooooooh._

"Well, apparently I'm not supposed to talk about that stuff but since this is a dream, I guess-"

"Max," _Even in my own dream he cuts me off. _"You're not dreaming."

I just laughed.

Suddenly, my phone buzzed, and the screen read Anne Walker...

_Mom_.

"I'm not sure how this happened to you, Max, but It's real, and you're mom is _really_ calling your cell right now because it's one o'clock in the morning, and you're not exactly home yet."

I silently looked into his empathetic eyes, and instinctively declined the call. I looked at myself in the miraculous mirror one more time, disbelieving. For the first time since the surgery, the constantly excruciating pain in my body had dimmed to just a bit of a discomforting pinch.

So, it finally hit me.

This wasn't a dream.

I'm awake

_I'm awake._

Oh, my God, I'm awake.

_"What the hell is happening to me?"_

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><p><strong>Not my best work but it's a start, right? Lol, sorry, I'm kinda stiff. I'll get better, I promise!<strong>

**Please, please review! I NEED YOUR FEED BACK :D**

**-A.O.L.**


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